User talk:EyeYamIronMan

Interstellar
Hello, regarding Interstellar (film), the plot summary that you provided was way too long. Wikipedia's policy here says, "Wikipedia treats fiction in an encyclopedic manner, discussing the reception and significance of notable works in addition to a concise summary." In that vein, WikiProject Film's guideline is to write a plot summary between 400 and 700 words. We are not trying to replicate watching the film. The concise summary is intended for readers to get a sense of the film to be able to understand what secondary sources have to say about it. Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks, Erik (talk &#124; contrib) (ping me) 14:16, 5 November 2014 (UTC)

Hi Erik,

Thanks for your message and suggestions. Almost immediately after posting I realized as well that my summary was much too long and have already begun work on rewriting it in a format more appropriate for a traditional plot summary. With such a captivating and intelligent film, as a stickler for accuracy I found myself wanting to impart each wonderful detail. However, I'm confident that I can accomplish the same goal with a concise and efficient summary. I will post the new version as soon as possible, and if you like what you see, hopefully it can be used as the page's official plot summary. Speaking of which, I do have a few questions: how does an article become a Featured Article, and what exactly does that entail? Does that mean it remains protected from future editing? Also, with the aforementioned questions, can you give me the details of a Good Article? The fact that anyone can edit Wikipedia is truly wonderful, but is there a way for me to eventually submit my plot summary to be considered as an official synopsis of sorts? I'm always open to editing and suggestions, but are there ways in which a writer's work could be considered in a more official capacity?

Thanks in advance for your help. I'll post the new plot summary as soon as possible. Look forward to hearing from you!

Cheers, -Will

P.S., Despite being far too long, hopefully you were impressed by the sheer thoroughness, accuracy, and detail of the previous plot summary? Written all from memory based on a screening from weeks ago! :)

EyeYamIronMan (talk) 16:16, 5 November 2014 (UTC)EyeYamIronMan


 * Hi, Will! Glad to hear back from you. Unfortunately, I did not read the plot summary. I've been spoiled enough doing research to add content to the article. :) I am seeing the movie this Saturday, so I will check it out then. I reverted because there was not a doubt that it was too long per WP:PLOT. I look forward to your concise summary too!


 * For what it's worth, keep in mind that the plot summary of a recently released film will be highly in flux. Details will be added, either in small or large amounts, and eventually it is too big again. Not to mention that there are so many ways to summarize a film! I prefer to be hands-off when it comes to the plot summary and instead work on other aspects of the article, which are far more likely to be permanent. There is unfortunately no such thing as an official version, but there can be a stable version that will change very little. That will not happen with Interstellar for months or over a year, maybe. :-P


 * To answer your other questions, an article can become a Featured Article by meeting the criteria here. There are official FA candidate discussions in which other editors vet the article to determine if it meets the criteria. You can see these discussions here. An article becomes a Good Article by meeting the less stringent criteria here. Just one editor can review an article to see if it qualifies as a Good Article, so if the review is poor, a bad article can unfortunately become a Good Article. Featured Articles are stable and rarely change much, but sometimes standards change. Older Featured Articles about some films may not pass today, for example.


 * If you're interested in contributing to film articles, we have guidelines at MOS:FILM. There is also a WikiProject Film community with an active talk page at WT:FILM. The best contributions to make are from secondary sources, since in my experience, the content stays the same with only minor copy-editing. With a plot summary, it's completely possible for someone to go to a regular, Good, or Featured Article and completely rewrite the summary.


 * Let me know if you have any questions! :) Regards, Erik (talk &#124; contrib) (ping me) 18:18, 5 November 2014 (UTC)